Evil Waits...For Anyone
by Arigatomina
Summary: My first horror fic, based on Stephen King's short story, The Raft. The GW characters decided to go for a day of swimming and play, but they end up going to the wrong lake. No one sees the sign that says no-swimming, and they'll soon learn why. Many pa
1. Default Chapter

Author's Notes: this is almost a fusion with the short story written by Stephen King, The Raft. This story, I *think*, was found in the Graveyard Shift. It could be in the Skeleton Crew, though, I don't remember for sure. A movie was also made in Creepshow II, this being one of the short movies on that tape.  
Category: AU, Gundam Wing, almost a fusion with a story, Horror, Romance  
Pairings: will be 1x2, 3x4, D+N/N+D, 13x6x5, and maybe others, for now: R+1, C+5, H+C, S.N.+4, U+N, 13+6, 6+5/5+6, 13+5, 3+4/4+3, D+H, D+C  
Warnings: there *will* be death in this fic, none of the gundam pilots but the girls are up for grabs (some anyway) and maybe Treiz but I don't know about him yet, I will have two versions, an edited and an unedited, one will have the grotesque descriptions but I'll clean it up for those who are faint at heart and disgusted by blood and gore, the edited and unedited versions will be defined by part when I get to that. For this part, there are no warnings.  
Author: Arigatomina  
Email: arigatoumina@hotmail.com  
Full Archive: www.fanfiction.net  
  
Evil Waits...For Anyone  
  
Part 1  
  
"Miss Relena, are you sure this is the place?"  
  
The lake was large enough to be the one they were looking for, but it didn't seem to belong on the Peacecraft estate. The end of it could be seen, and the trees seemed to be growing out of the shallows on the far side. With its surface slightly glazed by the bright summer sun, it had a rustic beauty and it was definitely a part of nature. But the lake they'd been told about wasn't supposed to be so overgrown. The beach was practically nonexistent as they stood amongst the coarse grass that sprouted in jagged clumps.   
  
Glaring for a split second at the pale blonde boy, Relena's neck straightened. "Are you insinuating that I got us lost, Quatre? I assure you that I'm perfectly capable of following some simple instructions. Besides, this has to be the lake." Smiling sweetly, she stepped closer to the boy beside her, wrapping an arm around Heero's waist. "See? There's the raft."  
  
"Oh." Quatre nodded as he followed her arm, spotting the large raft that floated in the center of the lake. He couldn't' tell how it had been made, but it certainly looked large enough for all of them. "I guess we'll have to swim to it. Unless there's a boat?"  
  
"Now, Quatre, I'm sure the water's safe enough to swim in," Sylvia said, her eyes moving from the blonde to Relena. She hated it when her friends fought.  
  
"Sure it is," Duo laughed, shaking his head. "But it's gonna be kinda hard to swim the baskets and stuff out there." This earned him a cold glare from Relena, but he grinned at her, not the least bit bothered.  
  
"There's a boat there," Trowa said, his expression void as he pointed toward a large growth of grass. Stepping to it, he pulled the thing forward and looked it over carefully. He knew as well as Quatre that this wasn't the destination Pagan had intended when he'd given the directions. Unfortunately, there wasn't much he could do about it without starting an argument. While her family was a pacifist one, Relena tended to take insult when anyone questioned her. Despite her older brother's attempts to undo the spoiling her late father had caused, she still saw herself as the center of everything and infallible. Turning, Trowa nodded to Zechs. "It's good enough."  
  
The tall man carried a large basket, setting it into the boat as he was careful not to look at his sister. He'd told her they were going the wrong way, but she'd ignored him, too busy hanging all over Heero to pay attention to the road. Not that it hadn't been easy to get lost, as fast as Dorothy drove. Glancing to where Triez, Une, and Noin stood, he gave a slight sneer. Older than the others, the four of them had been forced to take part in the little excursion. Zechs's stepmother seemed to think he needed to spend more time with his sister and since he and his friends had already made plans, they'd all ended up going.  
  
"We're never going to fit in that little thing," Noin said, watching the white-haired man's closed expression. "Why don't the four of us go on out there with the stuff." Glancing to Heero, who was staring off to the side, she smiled as she saw who his eyes were on. "Is that okay with you guys?"  
  
"I suppose so," Relena said absentmindedly, frowning as she too noticed Heero's preoccupation. "Heero and I'll go next."  
  
"There's room for five at the very least," Duo objected, frowning at the boat into which the older ones were climbing. "If they take the stuff, we'll only need to make two more trips." Turning, however, he noticed there were only nine of them still on the beach. "Hey...where's Wufei?" Catherine was standing a few feet behind Trowa, and Duo saw the angry expression on her face. "Let me guess, he won't come out of the car?"  
  
The red-head shrugged, looking out over the water. "Who cares. If he wants to sit in *there* all day, let him."  
  
With a drawn out sigh, Duo shook his head. "Fine. Hilde, why don't you and Cathy go with Relena and Heero. I'll go drag the party-pooper out of the car and come out next."  
  
"Okay, Duo," the dark-haired girl said. Moving to Catherine, she smiled and leaned a bit closer to the girl as she dropped her voice. "Come on, we can spoil Relena's fun. Although I don't see how she could be alone with Heero since Zechs is the one bringing the boat back for them."  
  
Leaving the others, Duo stomped through the knee-high grass as he made his way to where they'd left the cars. As Catherine had said, he found his target in the back seat of the dark-blue car Treiz had driven. The Chinese boy had refused to ride in Relena's pink limo since the color was so *very* inappropriate and offensive to his male pride. Grinning, Duo leaned close to the window and tapped on it, smirking when Wufei didn't even blink. The boy had his arms folded over his chest and he looked fully prepared to put up a fight if anyone tried to budge him. With another shake of his head, the long-haired boy pulled the door open. "Let's go, Wufei."  
  
"No," the black-eyed boy said shortly, glaring. "I'm not going. I have no intention of catering to that girl's fantasy."  
  
Making a face when the boy took offense at his sudden laughter, Duo winced. "I'm sorry, you're just so funny sometimes. I mean, it's not like you have to talk to her. Besides, this isn't the first time we've all hung out together."  
  
"I'm going to kill Trowa." This was delivered in such a calm manner that Duo laughed again. "I'm serious."  
  
"I know," the American said quickly, leaning against the open door. "But you can't blame Trowa. I mean, he *did* tell her you weren't interested. What else could he do? Tell her you're gay?" Duo grinned quickly and made as if he were joking. The truth was that he'd seen the glances his Chinese friend had sent towards Relena's brother and he was pretty sure his guess was accurate. "Just be cool, Wufei. You know Trowa absolutely refuses to be mean to his sister. He can't help it if she doesn't believe him."  
  
"Fine, but I'm still staying here." While he was fairly certain he'd be physically drug out of the car eventually, Wufei couldn't keep from giving a token resistance. As much as he hated to admit it, even to himself, he enjoyed 'hanging out' with his friends. If only the girls didn't insist on accompanying them.   
  
"You're not afraid, are you?" Duo taunted, faking a horrified expression. "Of a *girl*?! Not Chang Wufei...surely not..."  
  
"Idiot."  
  
Smiling, Duo stepped back as the boy got out of the car. "Come on, we can torture Relena later, that always cheers *me* up."  
  
"Fine." Following the cheerful boy, Wufei dropped his guard for a moment as he smirked, his eyes following Duo's long braid as it swung with the boy's energetic steps. He *did* think the American acted the fool a *bit* too often, but he had a way of making him forget his anger. He was definitely the happiest person Wufei had ever known. "We can toss her in," he said slowly, as if he was seriously contemplating it. "Heero would probably help."  
  
"You kidding?" Duo asked, glancing back as the boy walked up beside him. "His sweet little Peacecraft Princess?"  
  
"He just puts up with her, like the rest of us." Catching sight of the others, Wufei gave a silent sight as he saw red hair glinting in the boat that was just reaching a surprisingly large raft. Then he gave a calculating look to the lake. "Is *this* it?" he asked, surprise registering in his voice. "This dump?"  
  
"Relena got lost," Trowa said, nodding to the black-haired boy.  
  
"Yes," Dorothy smirked, glancing across the water to the girl in question. "But this water's wet too. Any lake'll do, as hot as it is." Quatre was giving the girl beside him a small smile and Dorothy's black eyes glinted as the blonde boy tried to be inconspicuous as he sidled away. Sylvia Noventa was a complete sweet-heart, but Dorothy was sure the girl was chasing a lost cause. Quatre was just too kind to come out and tell her. Stepping forward, she caught the boy's pale blue-green eyes, letting hers drop as she scoped him out. With a sultry wink, she had him blushing. "Can't wait to see *you* in a skimpy pair of shorts. Are you sure you don't want to swim out to the raft?"  
  
His cheeks burned, but the young blonde couldn't stop his blush as he glanced at the others. Duo was grinning, but Trowa's green-eyed gaze had him flushing more and he dropped his eyes for a moment. "Two-piece?"  
  
Dorothy jerked as she looked to her prey in surprise. "What?"  
  
"Are you wearing a two-piece," Duo supplied, ever helpful. "If you wanna see his, you have to show us yours." The girl blushed and he laughed as the shade was dark against her long, pale blonde hair. "Don't dish it out if you can't take it, Cat-a-lon-ia." He drew her last name out purposely, making her sound exotic. "Too bad the others'll miss the strip show, though."  
  
"Stop teasing her," Wufei muttered, poking the boy.  
  
"Are you standing up for me?" Dorothy demanded, her eyes narrowed as she approached the Chinese boy slowly. "How chivalrous of you, Wufei."  
  
Scowling, the black-haired boy looked away. "This is going to be a long day."  
  
"It's just started," Sylvia put in, relieved that the argument seemed to be over. She'd wanted to say something in Quatre's defense, especially since she had a crush on her friend, but she just couldn't make herself. There was no reason to add to an argument. "We're going to have lots of fun."  
  
"Sure we are," Duo purred, smiling at Wufei. "Right, Chang?"  
  
"You're dead, *Maxwell*" Warning given, he took a sharp lunge toward the boy, then he froze in shock as Duo stumbled and fell back.   
  
Duo blinked as it took a moment for him to realize he'd fallen into the lake, then he let out a disgusted cry. "This is *so* gross!" Standing slowly, he looked down at the brown slime that covered his hand and nearly cried as he imagined what the rest of his clothes looked like. "Man...this is so unfair..."  
  
"Duo..." Quatre blanched, "your hair..."  
  
Raising his hand slowly, Duo touched the back of his head. He didn't move for nearly a minute as he stared at his slimy palm, then he'd suddenly grabbed Wufei and both were in the shallow water.   
  
"What did I miss?" Heero asked, expression dead-panned as looked at the two sludge-covered boys currently intent on drowning each other. Getting out of the boat, he helped Trowa pull it closer to land.   
  
"They decided they'd rather die than eat Relena's cooking," Dorothy quipped. "So they're killing each other."   
  
"Relena cooked?"  
  
Seeing the Japanese boy's frozen expression, Sylvia stepped forward quickly. "No, she didn't. Dorothy, you know she didn't cook the food."  
  
The blonde girl rolled her eyes, raising an arched eyebrow. "Of course I know that, it was a joke." As much as she liked the girl, Sylvia tended to be a bit naive. "Let's go. We can all fit in that boat. They can swim."   
  
Nodding, Heero handed the paddles to Quatre as he and Trowa pushed the boat onto the water before climbing in. They'd gone about fifteen feet when the two wrestlers noticed.   
  
"Hey! What about us?!" Sputtering when Wufei shoved him into the deep part, Duo glared. The black-haired boy was already swimming to the raft, though, so he followed with a disgruntled expression.  
  
"Heero, your shoes are really muddy." Frowning, Relena turned to her brother with a glare. "You could have gone for them."  
  
"So very charming," Treiz murmured, eyeing the girl's haughty expression. "You make such a wonderful hostess, Relena."  
  
She didn't like the man, so she turned her back on him. "You're right," she said softly, determined not to let her anger show as she caught Dorothy's mocking gaze. "Well, I guess you can wash them off," she sighed, looking down at Heero yellow sneakers She'd never liked the boy's choice in shoes, but they looked even worse covered in brown slime.  
  
"You swam in your clothes?!" Hilde frowned as she saw Duo and Wufei approaching and sighed. "Really, Duo. Couldn't you wait?"  
  
Duo laughed as he pushed himself onto the raft, enjoying the way Relena jumped back so she wouldn't get wet. "I didn't have much choice. Wufei started it."  
  
"You're so immature," Relena scoffed. She smiled when she saw Heero removing the offending shoes and moved to the largest basket. "Where's my blanket?"  
  
Opening it, Noin glanced up. "Which one? There's two here."  
  
"Well, they're both mine, of course," Relena said, leaning forward. "But you guys can use the blue one."  
  
Noin didn't comment as she handed over the folded pink cloth. It was hard not to laugh at the girl, especially with the disgusted look on Une's face. "Of course, *Miss* Relena."  
  
Relena spread out the blanket, shooing Catherine and Hilde back as she found it very large. "Isn't it pretty, Heero?"  
  
"It's big," the boy said slowly, his cobalt blue eyes narrowing at the color. "And pink."  
  
"My favorite," Duo muttered sarcastically as he stepped back with the others. "Um, Relena? I hope you plan to share that thing, 'cause there isn't enough room to stand if the other one's that big."  
  
"I'm sure she'll share," Sylvia said, frowning at the violet-eyed boy. "Right, Relena?"  
  
There was a long pause, but the female Peacecraft finally nodded, her reluctance evident. "Of course." Then her eyes narrowed as she looked at the two dripping boys. "But not in those wet things. You'll have to wait till they dry."  
  
"You two can sit on this one," Zechs said, his eyes narrowed as he glared at his sister. He just couldn't understand how she could imagine herself to be refined when she acted like such a...bitch. "But I think we should swim first, anyway."  
  
"But I'm hungry." Relena's mouth fell open when no one looked at her and she flinched as Heero suddenly pulled off his tank-top. "Heero? Aren't you going to eat?"  
  
"You shouldn't swim right after you eat," Sylvia said quickly. "We probably *should* swim first."  
  
"And it's much too hot to eat right now." Smiling at Relena's frown, Hilde shrugged. "Why not swim? You're such a *good* swimmer." It was very hard to keep a straight face as Relena preened, and she had to hide a grin when she heard Duo coughing to cover laughter. Turning to the four older ones, she paused. They'd all met Zechs before, but she'd only seen the other three a couple of times, and that only in passing. They'd graduated a few years ago, so they didn't go to the high school anymore. Her eyes stopped on the young woman with dark bluish-black hair, similar to hers, and she smiled as she caught Noin's gaze. "You're all going to swim, right?"  
  
She was cute. The thought flashed through Treiz's mind as he exchanged glances with Zechs and he stood slowly. "I couldn't refuse an invitation like that, and I know Noin and Une would enjoy a race. If you other girls are up to it?"  
  
Still preening, Relena nodded quickly. "I hope they can swim well, though."  
  
"We wouldn't have come if we couldn't," Une said slowly, her voice low as she stared at the blonde girl. She wasn't bothered by the comment as she was looking forward to humiliating her. Since their day had been ruined and their plans thrown, she and Noin had already decided how to deal with Zechs's sister. Slow and relatively painful sounded about right. "A little exercise would do me well. I used to swim quite a bit in high school."  
  
"She was best on the swim team three years running," Dorothy whispered, leaning close to Catherine who was standing as far from Wufei as the raft allowed. "You're the fastest swimmer I know, so I'll ask you now. Why don't you fake it the first race, okay?"  
  
"Why should I?" Catherine asked in surprise. "Either way Relena loses."  
  
"But she *knows* how fast *you* are," Hilde put in, having moved close enough to hear them. "She'll never expect it from Une."  
  
A slow smile came to the red-head's face and she gave a subtle nod. She'd never personally been offended by Relena as the girl tended to ignore her when she was around, but the idea had a certain allure. Especially since it would help to get her mind off the stupid mistake she'd made earlier. Yes, her brother had warned her that Wufei wouldn't go out with her, but that hadn't stopped her growing interest in the normally quiet boy. He had a grace about him that attracted her and she'd stubbornly decided to tell him about her feelings. Once the others had piled out of the cars, she'd gone for it with devastating results. Glancing at the black-haired boy standing across the raft from her, she scowled as she remembered his response to her tentative words. He'd ignored her, not even looking at her until she'd finally left to join the others. But it didn't matter anymore, because she'd decided she could do better than him, anyway. "Operation humiliate Relena," she whispered, getting into the playful spirit of her friends, "is underway."  
  
Sylvia's eyes widened at the loud cheer the three girls gave and she looked around slowly. "I'm not a very good swimmer," she said softly. Once again, she felt left out. They were all friends, but there were times when she felt she didn't know or belong with them. Especially since she still didn't understand how they could all be friends without killing each other. Their personalities were so different and they argued continuously.  
  
"Then you should swim, practice makes you perfect," Heero said, earning him a few surprised glances and a sharp stare from the blonde girl beside him. For some reason, he didn't like the lost look in Sylvia's eyes, but he passed it off. While the girl was new to their school, she was one of his friends, a member of their group, so it was natural for him to be nice to her. Besides, he thought of her in the same terms as he did Relena. Both were confined by the characters they'd been molded into and although Sylvia was sweet to Relena's forceful nature, both were naive and needed to be watched after. The only other one in the group who fell into this category in his mind, was Quatre, but he didn't have to worry about him, not with Trowa around. He'd spoken extensively with his tall friend and Heero knew there wasn't need for *him* to watch after the pale blonde.  
  
As soon as Relena started undressing, Duo rolled back her blanket. It was much too large and he and Wufei would need to lay out their clothes so they could dry. Luckily, the blonde girl was watching Heero as she stripped down to a demure one-piece, no doubt hoping for a sign of lust in his cobalt-blue eyes. Following her gaze, Duo smirked as he saw the boy had his back to her. They weren't actually a couple, and he'd never seen Heero so much as touch the girl except at the dances their school held. No, any relationship those two had was all on Relena's part and Duo was determined to do everything in his power to keep it that way. As far as he was concerned, if the Japanese boy had to go out with one of the girls in the group, he'd be better off with Sylvia or Catherine. Even Hilde would be better, although Duo was pretty sure the girl wouldn't go for it since she'd already explained to him that she liked someone who definitely *wasn't* Heero. Still smirking, he quickly shed his own damp clothing.  
  
* * *  
TBC  
--notes--  
I know, no death or anything in this part, but I think this will be a long fic. I thought about doing a one-parter, but I just don't have the patience for it anymore. If I know the fic is going to be more than thirty pages, I simply can't wait until I've written it all, I *have* to share what I have. Mostly because of the responses. I admit it, I'm a response-junky. It's like caffiene to me, I'm addicted. Anyway, since I've written parts for some of my other multi-part fics I think I deserve to start some new ones. Kill me if you like, but it would be a waste of time, you'd never find me. On a personal note, you'd never know to meet me what sort of things I write, only that I *do* write. I would like to explain, really quick before you get bored, why I insist on posting multi-parter after multi-parter. First, I have noticed tons of new faces on the lists, and they don't read multi-part fics that already have a bunch of parts out. So this way, I get new readers. I know it's a strain on those already reading my fics, and I *do* appologize (really). Also, I have these ideas. So many of them. If I wrote a multi-part fic for every idea I had, there would be over thirty of them. Imagine that. As it is, I might be posting two new ones, but I still have five others I'm holding for the sake of my faithful readers' patience. Believe me, it's hard not to just go ahead and post them. (See? I have *some* control.) Hey! This is my first horror fic! I've always wanted to write them. King was the first author I ever really read. (The Stand, I read it when I was nine and my mom about died when I actually finished it. That's when she said to read War and Peace. You know? I believe if you can read a novel by Tolstoy or another Russian author, you can read anything. I'm a firm believer in the old advice; "If you want to be a voracious writer, be a voracious reader." Okay, so maybe I've paraphrased but it's one of my mottoes.)  
  
  
  
  



	2. Part 2

Category: AU, Gundam Wing, fusion with The Raft by Stephen King, Yaoi/Yuri  
Warnings: hints of shonen ai and possible yuri  
Pairings: will be 1x2, 3x4, 13x6x5, for now: R+1, 2+1, 3+4/4+3, D+H, U+D, assumed 13x6  
Author: Arigatomina  
Email: arigatoumina@hotmail.com  
Complete Archive: www.geocities.com/arigatomina  
  
Evil Waits...For Anyone  
  
Part 2  
  
"Damn, Quatre, you're blinding me!" Grinning, Duo held a hand over his eyes, peeking through his fingers to see the blonde boy blush furiously.   
  
"You aren't exactly tan," Wufei countered, smirking when Duo pouted at the insult. He'd already taken off his wet clothing, and he was reminded again of the benefits of being Chinese.   
  
"Maybe, but I'm not as pale as albino-boy over there." Quatre's eyelid was twitching, and Duo choked out a laugh at the boy's angry yet embarrassed expression.   
  
"I should push you in," Quatre muttered, folding his pale arms over his chest. He already felt uncomfortable, especially since Dorothy was eyeing him with a positively lascivious gaze. "Be glad I'm not the type."  
  
"No," Trowa said softly, moving behind Duo, "but I am." The longhaired boy gave a startled yipe when he grabbed him, but it was cut off as he abruptly dropped him over the edge of the raft. A glance showed Quatre smothering laughter, and he smirked, looking down at Duo's face when the boy resurfaced, his bangs clinging to his eyes. "How's the water?"  
  
"Cheap shot," Duo pouted. He was treading the water, looking up at Trowa, so he didn't see what was behind him until he felt a tug and was drawn under. When he rose again, he spat up a mouthful of water, wheeling at the sound of laughter.  
  
"About time you got in," Hilde grinned, backpedaling to put some distance between them. Une and Relena were a few yards away, arguing the course for their race, but she'd left them to see what was taking the boys so long. Duo was smiling at her, so she figured he wasn't going to retaliate for the dunking. "Hey, Dorothy, Sylvia, come on. Treize and Zechs promised to be markers, so we're going to start soon."  
  
"I don't think I want to race," Sylvia said quickly, looking over to where Noin and Catherine were floating near the others. "I'm too slow, so there really wouldn't be a point."  
  
"You're too hard on yourself," Dorothy commented, giving the girl a light push on her shoulder. "We're here to have fun, isn't that what you said earlier? Besides, the race is fixed, Une's going to win it no matter who participates."  
  
"I heard she was on the swim team," Quatre said, sitting down on the edge of the raft so he could include Hilde. "Are you planning to make Relena look like a fool?"  
  
"That's the plan," Dorothy smirked. She noted that Duo was beaming up at her, and she shook her hair back over a shoulder. "Not that she doesn't do that enough on her own." The violet-eyed American's expression had changed, and she blinked, frowning as she wondered what he was thinking.  
  
"Nice two-piece," Duo called, laughing when Dorothy's cheeks turned as red as her suit and Quatre sniggered at her. "I didn't even notice that you'd...grown since last year."  
  
"Duo!" Hilde's eyes were wide, and she splashed the boy, shocked at his lack of tact, although he wasn't the only one to notice. At fifteen, Dorothy had a nicely curved figure, but Duo wasn't supposed to be looking. "I can't believe you said that."  
  
"What? I was just complimenting her on her rack." Blinking rapidly, Duo managed to look surprised when Wufei choked and Dorothy let out an oath. Then the girl dove in after him and he grimaced before ducking under the raft and out of the way. It was dark under the water, and he'd noticed before that it wasn't very clear, but he could still make out the bottom of the raft. There wasn't any air under it, so he pushed deeper and didn't resurface until he was on the other side and out of harm's way. Peeking above the water, he grinned as he could hear Dorothy cursing.  
  
"Where did that rat go?" Dorothy growled. Her cheeks were still a bit flushed, but her eyes glinted merrily.  
  
"Going to drag him around by his tail?" Hilde asked, laughing when the blonde girl nodded enthusiastically. "Cool, I'll help."  
  
"If you girls are going to race, get over here!"   
  
Turning in the water, they looked to where Noin was waving. Sylvia shook her head at Dorothy when the blonde raised an eyebrow at her. "Well," Dorothy said, "Guess we'll have to drown the rat later."  
  
Duo kept quiet for a few minutes, then he pushed himself up so he could see over the edge of the raft. "Is it clear?"  
  
"That was an awful thing to do," Sylvia murmured, frowning at him.   
  
"Dishonorable," Wufei commented, but his lips were twitching in a manner that belied his criticism.   
  
"Ah, she'll get over it. Are you guys getting in, or what?" Quatre slid into the water and Duo swam around the raft to tread beside him. The blonde boy shook his head at him. "You're not mad at me, too, are you?"  
  
The boy's bottom lip was protruding slightly and Quatre couldn't help but smile at him. "No, Duo. I know you like to tease."  
  
"That's right. Dorothy just can't take a compliment. And you look fine, you know that. After all, you'd look pretty odd with your pale hair if you had a tan." The blonde boy blinked, and Duo grinned up to see Trowa nodding at him.   
  
"I don't tan," Quatre said, moving back when Sylvia slid into the water near him. "I tried once, but I burned so bad it wasn't even funny."  
  
"I bet it was," Duo laughed, "A blonde lobster." His joke was lost, since his friend wasn't paying him any attention. Quatre was looking past him, and he smirked when he saw Trowa's expression. "Here we go. Too bad there isn't a diving board." Quatre glanced at him, then they watched the tall boy dive in from the side of the raft, slicing the water quietly. "I swear, everything he does is like a gymnastic feat."   
  
"Trowa's very athletic," Quatre nodded.  
  
"He looks like he's been lifting weights," Duo whispered, getting close to the blonde boy. "I know he hasn't been doing it at school, but he's no where near as scrawny as he was last summer."  
  
"No," Wufei called, smirking when Duo's eyes widened. "But you are. Which makes absolutely no sense considering how much you eat." The longhaired boy was staring at him, no doubt wondering how he'd managed to hear him, and he shook his head. "You're louder than you think, Duo. And sounds carry over water." He inclined his head to where Trowa had resurfaced, and he could almost see Duo's embarrassment before the boy sank beneath the water. The girls were gathered halfway across the lake, and he jumped in quickly. "We should move if we want to watch this."  
  
"I don't know why they enjoy embarrassing Relena so much," Sylvia said softly, frowning in the girls' direction.   
  
"Because she's a self-absorbed brat," Duo commented. He'd resurfaced away from Trowa, and he swam backwards as he spoke. "And it's fun."  
  
"It doesn't bother Miss Relena," Quatre said. "She doesn't even realize they try to embarrass her. It's just their way of dealing with the way she acts. They don't mean any real harm."  
  
"I guess not, but it's still mean."  
  
"You're depressing me," Duo muttered. "I'm going to watch the race, you guys can stay here if you want, but I came to have fun." Turning in the water, he swam toward the others. He wasn't a bad swimmer, but it still took him a few minutes to reach them, and he grinned at Heero when the boy glanced at him. "They ready to start?"  
  
"Yes." Heero nodded to where Zechs had swum out about twenty yards. "He's the ending place. They'll start from Treize."  
  
"Heero! You have to watch us," Relena cried, glaring at them from her place a few feet away.   
  
The girls were separated by three feet each, and Treize was next to Une on the far end. They were waiting for his signal, but he was waiting for the others to reach them. When Trowa waved at him from the sidelines, he turned to Une and raised an eyebrow at her. She looked pleased with herself, her smirk almost a happy one. "You won't beat them by *that* much, will you?" he asked, his voice as low as possible. The woman smirked at him then turned her head so her eyes locked on Zechs. Silence reigned for a few seconds as they treaded in place, then Treize raised an arm over his head. "On your mark! Go!"  
  
Une had a lead right from the start, but Catherine wasn't far behind her. Their unmarked lines blurred a bit as Relena and Hilde drifted to their right, but no one took the time to complain. It would have been an odd race, since most of the spectators were watching quietly, but Duo's cheers echoed as Une's lead increased. They were bunched together as each centered on Zechs, then Dorothy dove under the water, taking Hilde down with her. Relena took a brief second to cry out as she was knocked out of her stroke, but she recovered in time to see Une win, Catherine a few feet behind her. The brown-haired woman nearly swam through Zechs, and he dove to the side with a wide grin.  
  
"We have a winner!" Zechs called, his grin not the least bit diminished by Relena's gasping glare. Une swam up next to him, and he glanced down to where Treize was, raising an eyebrow. "What happened to Noin?"  
  
"She knew she didn't stand a chance," Une said smoothly, smirking at the dark-haired woman who waved to them from across the lake. "So she saved her breath."  
  
"That's-" Zechs choked, his words gargled as he was suddenly jerked under the water and Une shoved away, staring at the place where he'd been. Then Dorothy popped up, a wide smirk curving her lips for a moment before Zechs managed to resurface beside her. "Hey!" A hand pulled it's way up from beneath the water, and he blinked at dark blue eyes as Hilde sputtered to the surface.  
  
"You tried to drown me, Dorothy!" Hilde's glare wasn't as effective since the blonde girl was laughing at her, but she tried to look intimidating.  
  
"Nonsense," Dorothy laughed, coughing for a second before she could rid herself of her smile. "You weren't going fast enough so I just wanted to be sure you made it to the finish line."  
  
"Yeah? So why did you grab my..." Hilde's face turned red abruptly when she realized her voice was loud enough for everyone to hear and she sank down in the water. "Uh..." Despite the cool water that covered her face up to her eyes, she could feel blood rushing to her cheeks. Dorothy had a light blush of her own although she was obviously trying to play it off.  
  
"It's hard to see under the water," Dorothy said slowly. For some reason, she was more embarrassed by Hilde's reaction than by the disgusted look Relena was giving her. Pinning the blonde girl with a dangerous look, she raised her chin. "Stop looking at me like that."  
  
Relena blinked, her expression clearing, then she laughed suddenly. "Oh, you two are funny. Hilde, your face is so red!"  
  
"Maybe," Catherine said, smiling at Hilde as she swam to them. "But the race is over. Let's go join the others and we can celebrate Une's victory." Relena's face grew pinched, and she gave the girl a quick smile before swimming off.  
  
"Cathy! Wait up." With a splash in Dorothy's direction, Hilde dove beneath the water to swim after her friend. This wasn't the first time the blonde had flirted with her, but she wasn't ready to try anything. Besides, she already had a crush on someone besides Dorothy. That meant she wasn't mature enough for a relationship, especially one that would cause trouble amongst her closest friends. She could see Dorothy swimming nearby when she resurfaced, and she was relieved to see that familiar smirk on the girl's face. Looking once more to where the guys were grouped near Treize, she took a breath and dived again. As far as her swimming abilities went, she moved much faster beneath the water.  
  
Relena was going after the two girls, and Zechs looked at Une for a minute, searching her face. The woman didn't often show what she was thinking, but he knew from the look in her eyes that she'd seen something interesting. "You aren't interested in one of them, are you?" Bright brown eyes flicked to him, and he had a glimpse of teeth before Une's smile disappeared.   
  
"We'll see," Une murmured, looking across the lake to the others. "Let's join them. Suddenly this forced excursion has promise."  
  
* * *  
  
Since she had no interest in seeing the race, Sylvia was swimming near the edges of the lake. The others were closer to the raft, and she kept an eye on them so she'd know when they decided to take a break. Until then, she could at least do what Heero'd suggested and try to swim a little. She wasn't horrible, but she'd only recently graduated from the doggy-paddle to a stroke similar to the ones the girls were using. It wasn't her fault, there hadn't been pools at any of her previous schools, so she'd never really had the opportunity to swim. Glancing to the others again, she stopped and floated for a moment when she saw that Relena was swimming to the raft. Quatre waved at her, and she smiled and turned toward them.   
  
A splash sounded not too far from her, and Sylvia turned, looking at the trees and grass that were growing out of the shallow part. At first she couldn't see anything, then she gasped and ducked when something flew over her head in a rush of feathers. Turning, she followed the large bird, recognizing it as some sort of duck. The cry was more of an odd honking, and she floated back a few feet as feathers drifted on the water. Then her eyes were caught by something colorful.  
  
* * *  
  
"If you don't hurry, I'll just have to eat without you," Relena threatened, frowning when Duo and Hilde cowered in mock fear. "I'm serious, I'm hungry." Heero pushed himself onto the raft, and she smiled at him. "I guess they don't have to eat now, if they don't want to."  
  
"No way!" Duo cried, shoving onto the raft quickly and tilting it in the process. "There's enough for everyone, right?" The blonde girl scowled at him and he stuck his tongue out at her. Turning, he pulled Hilde up before waving to Treize and Zechs who were talking a few feet away. "Guys! Let's eat, now, eh?"  
  
Trowa had climbed onto the raft, and Quatre gave him a smile when the tall boy helped him up. Turning, the blonde glanced at Relena who was still glaring at Duo, then he looked back to the water. He was the first to notice that Sylvia was missing, and he waved to the girl, spotting her near the edge of the lake. She turned, and he started to sit down but hesitated, his eyes going back to her again. The girl's back was to him now, and he blinked, squinting at something just beyond her. "What's that?"  
  
Following the boy's pointing finger, Trowa frowned. "It looks like...an oil patch or something. I'm not sure. There's no reason for this small lake to be polluted."  
  
"Sylvia!" Quatre called, frowning when the girl didn't move. "Hey!"  
  
"What's wrong?" Heero asked, stepping near them. His eyes moved to where they were looking and he blinked at the thing. It was small from so far away, but it looked to be circular. Black, it had a glossy sheen and it seemed to be riding the surface of the water. As he watched, it moved a few inches toward the girl and he glanced at Quatre. "What's she doing? She doesn't plan to touch it, does she? That looks like oil."  
  
Eyes wide, Sylvia stared at the stuff, her mouth falling open. The sheen was so bright, colors swirling with indigo and jade, patterns captivating and she couldn't blink. Somewhere in the back of her mind she heard someone calling her name, but that didn't matter. Her fingers trembled, her legs barely moving to keep her afloat, and she reached out to it. "So...beautiful..."   
  
* * *  
TBC  
--notes--  
At least 3 to 4 people will die in this fic, none of the pilots. There will also be violence/gore in future parts. I will produce a gore-free version upon request. 


End file.
